Yes, there is good to come from this. And yes there is also fear and anxiety!
As a yoga teacher and a resource for guidance and comfort during this time I want to acknowledge all that each of us has to be grateful for and all the good that can come out of this unusual time. It is a time to remember how fortunate we are even if we are one of the hardest hit.
Personally, I am grateful for my own health, for the health of my kids and my aging parents and for those of my students. I'm grateful that I don't know anyone personally that has tested positive for the virus or is sick due to Covid-19.
I personally am grateful that I am in a position to financially and emotionally support my oldest son who is graduating in May with no commencement ceremony and no job offer. He has been working his butt off in school to be able to get a job in his field, move in with his girlfriend, and start his "real life." And now he might not be able to find any kind of job at all. But I can offer him comfort and a safety net.
I am grateful that I have a home and can be a resource for my youngest son who is suddenly back home from college and having to learn how to do all his courses online. I'm working to find that balance between how much he needs from me and how much I need to stay away. I am grateful for our ability to communicate even though he is a teenager who would rather not.
I'm grateful to have a partner to share this emotional time with, that I can be vulnerable and angry and scared with. I'm grateful I have someone to binge watch Ozark and Love is Blind with. I'm grateful I don't have to do this alone when so many others do.
And yes I am also scared. I woke up this morning crying from the stress of it all. I was releasing a wave of emotion that I'm still not entirely sure of the depths from which it came. I am scared and worried for my kids. I'm worried about our country's future. I am worried about all the people that are being impacted by this virus even thought they are not sick just as much as I am for those people that are getting sick.
And I think it's important that I and all of us acknowledge that it's okay to be scared. Give yourself permission to be sad and grieve the losses of this time. Acknowledge the loneliness and loss of connection. Acknowledge the hurt and the fear. And recognize that even if you have nothing to do you may feel exhausted and overwhelmed by it all. And even if you don't know why allow yourself to feel emotional and to feel the depth of your soul.
And then move forward! Take every moment and every day as a new one. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Yoga is a practice in being aware and present. Once you spend time becoming aware of how you feel and what your experiencing, allow yourself to focus on being present.
Take each day as it comes with gentleness, grace and with gratitude.
